Tile-laying apparatus.



I'. l.. STEENROD.

TILE LAYING APPARATUS.

APPLICATION FILED FEB.I,II1.

Paieited Dec. 17, 1.918.

3`SHEETS-SHEET l.

I. L. STEENROD.

me LAYING APPARATUS.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 7, I9l7.

Patented Dec. 1T, 1918.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

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ATTORNEY I. L. STEENROD.

TILE LAY|NG APPARATUS.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 7| 1917.

Patented Dec. 17', 1918.

` giu/@goza ATTORNEY.

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J'ULIUS L. STEENROD, 0F KENOSHA, .WISCONSIN, ASSIGNOR T0 FREDERICK C. AUSTIN,

OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

TILE-Larme APPARATUS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

. To all whom t may concern:

lao

Be it known that` I, JULIUS L. STEENROD, a. citizen of the United States of America, and resident of Kenosha, 'Kenosha county, Wisconsin, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Tile-Laying Appa ratus, of which the following isa specification.

My invention relates to trenching machines of that kind in which a digging beam is arranged at the rear end of the machine and provided with an endless series of buckets which cut a trench While the machine moves slowly forward. Excavators of this kind are used, for example, in making trenches for laying tile, the excavated dirt being returned to the trench behind the excavator after the tile is properly laid therein.

Generally stated, the object of my invention is to provide a novel and improved arrangement to facilitate the laying of the tile at thebottom of the trench immediately in rear of the forwardly moving digging beam and buckets.` Y

A special object is to provide, as an at tachment for a trenching ,machine, a tilelaying apparatus which will work in. either hard or soft ground, vand which 4will form a longitudinal groove along the bottom of body which slides on the bottom of the trench behind the buckets.

PatentedDec. 17, 1918. i

Fig. 5 is a view similar to Fig. l, showing the digging apparatus raised out of the ground.

As thus illustrated, my invention com- `\prises an excavator-body A mounted upon the trench, in which groove the tile can be .my invention consists in matters hereinafter set forth and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings Figure l is a side elevation of the rear portion of an excavator having a tile-laying attachment or apparatus in conjunction therewith, for facilitating the laying of the tile immediately in rear of the excavator, embodying the principles of my invention.

Fig. 2 is an enlarged vertical section on line 2 2 in Fig. l.

' Fig. 3 is a view similar to Fig. 2, showing the manner in which the groove-cutter is employed or operated when the ground is comparatively hard.

Fig. 4 is a front elevation of the box-like suitable traction-devices a, the forward portions of said body and traction-devices being broken away for convenience of illustration. At the rear of the machine, the

transverse shaft B is supported in suitable bearings on the frame of the body, and the digging beam C is supported by this shaft, so that said beam is adapted to swing up and down at its lower and rear end. A raisingand-lowering apparatus D, of any suitable character, is applied to the upper end portion 0 of said beam to raise and lower the same by tilting it about the horizontal axis provided by said shaft. Sprockets E are mounted upon said shaft, and rotary supporting members e, -of any suitable character, are mounted to rotate about a horizontal axis at the .lower end of the' digging beam. Endless sprocket-chains F are carried by sprockets E and the members e, and digging buckets Gr are secured at intervals to said chains or link-belts,.whereby the rotation of the shaft B, by any suitable means, will cause the operation of said buckets. It will be understood that the buckets are operated so that those behind the beam move downward and those in front of the'beam move upward, the upwardly traveling buckets op H orbreast of the trench, in the usual and well-known manner. In this way, and by slowly operating the traction-devices while the buckets G are in operation, the machine will move slowly forward and cause the buckets to cut a trench having straight sides,- the depth of the trenchvbeing regulated byadjusting the beam up and down yin the Well-known manner. I f y Trenches of this kind are used for the laying of tile, and the general method consists 1n laying the tile along the bottom of the trench and then using theexcavated dirt as a filling to cover the tile. Ordi narily, the tile is laid immediately behind the excavator, and to facilitate this method various attachments have heretofore been used immediately behind the digging beam and buckets. For this purpose, the box-'like 90. l erating against the sloping forward end wall f body or structure I is arranged immediately behind the beam and buckets, being providedV with a front wall z' which forms a shield immediate] behind the buckets, and which is curved orward at its lower portion to conform to the curved path of the buckets, thereby to keep the loose excavated' dirt in the trench crowded forward 1n posi# bottom 2 which is curved to conform to the trough-like curvature of the bottom of the trench, which curvature con orms to the curve of the edges of the buckets G, in the Well-known manner. The sides 1 are spaced apart by braces 3 or any other suitable means. Relatively short standards 4 are provided at the front of the body I, one at each side thereof, and taller standards or uprights 5 are provided at a distance in rear thereof. The beam C is provided at its upper portion with a rigid frame 6 comprising -the rigidly connected members 7, 8, 9 and 10, arranged as shown in Fig. 1, thus providing a stifening frame for the beam. The body'A has a rear frame 11 and 12 :to support the body I behind the excavator'.

Preferably, this iS-done by means of parallel bars J, one at each side of the trench, which connect the front standards 4 with the frame-members 11 and 12, using the pivotbolts 13 for this purpose. Similar bars K, one at each side of the machine, connect the upper ends of the frame-members 11 and 12 with the upper portions of the standards 5, the pivot-bolts 13being employed for this purpose at the upper` ends of said bars. At their lower ends, the bars K are connected by pivots 14 with the standards 5 and have a series of holes 15 to permit adjustment of the connection. The bars J have similar holes 16 to permit adjustment or variation of the bolts 17 by which these standards 4 are connected to the bars J. Bars 18 extend between the bars J and K, being pivoted thereon at v 19, so that a parallel-motion; connection is provided. Links 20 connect the bars J with the beam C, having pivots 21 and 22, whereby the l barsJ remain substantially Vparallel` with said beam, when the latter is `raised and lowered. (See Fig. 5.) Holes 23 vin the links 20 permit adjustment for the bolts 21 and 22 to insure the desired modeof operation.

The trench made by this machine is much wider than the tile, in order to enable the Workman to conveniently do th'e work of' laying the tile, and it becomes desirable to cut a longitudinal groove along the'bottom of the trench in which to lay the tile. For this purpose, a groove-cutter L is provided digging-beam mounted at its upper en swlng up and down at its lower end, and a 1 'and secured to the under side of the bottom 2 of the body I, so that a groove will be cut in the ground as the machine moves4 forward. The workman stands in the body I and drops the tile into the groove 24 cutl cutter L will then rest and slide upon the i bottom of the trench, causing the bottom Wall 2 to move along a distance above the bottom of the trench, so that a certain amount of the loose dirt left by the buckets in the trench will be allowed to pass under the body I, and this loose dirt will be compressed at each side of the cutter L to form the sides of the groove for the tile. (See Fig. ,3.) In other words, in soft ground this groove is formed in the" solid ground below the bottom of the trench, while in hard ground said groove is formed in the loose excavated dirt left by the buckets in the trench. With the construction shown, the body I is always vertical, so that its bottom lis horizontal, regardless of the depth of the trench. This is because of the parallel-motion-connection by .which the body I is supported.

' As shown in Fig. 4, adjustable cutterplates M are secured to the front of the body I, at opposite sides, and can be pushed out against the sides of the trench.A For this purpose, each plate has horizontal slots m for the bolts 24, so that by loosening these bolts the plates can be moved toward and away from each other.

Thus, a groove is formed for the tile, so

that the laying of the latter will be rendered more certain and accurate, the workman in' is prevented, so that when the excavated dirt is returned to the trench, the tile will be 4properly covered and will not be disarranged.

What I claim as my invention is 1. In an excavator, apparatus for cutting a trench, abody adapted and arranged to 4slide along on the bottom of the trench immediately in rear of said apparatus, means on the bottom 'of said body to form a longitudinal groove for tile along the bottom of the trench, said apparatus comprising al to .a ove said beam,

frame to support said body for movementging buckets carried by said digging beam, a hollow body adapted to slide tom of the trench behind said buckets to fameans for changing the angle of said digthe working depth 'thereof in the groun and mechanism to automatically maintain said hollow7 same operative position thereof digging beam, and for all depths of said body in the ground, and for supporting said body to swing up and down with said beam.

3. In a trenching machine, specified in claim 2, said prising a trolled by said beam.

et. In a trenching machine, a structure as specified in claim 2, said mechanism comprising parallel members extending upward substantially at the same angle with said beam, fXedpivots for the upper ends of said members, a pivoted link forming a connection between said beam and the lower member, pivoted links to connect said parallel members together, so that said members and links form a parallel motion support provided at its lower end with fixed pivotal points on said body.

5. In a trenching machine, a structure as specied in claim 2, said mechanism coma structure as mechanism com- 6. In a trenching machine, a tilting trench on the bot-. d

I' said device havin a means whereby sai device is adjustable up and cutter disposed in position to cut a trench behind the machine, a device to slide on the bottom of the trench behind said trench in the ground.

In a trenching1 machine, a trench cutter,

laying of tile in the trench,

of the trench and to each side of the hollow body, an support said hollow body and by which to lift it out of the trench, said cutters having slots (m) extending transversely thereof, and bolts (22)' engaging said slots to support the cutter plates, whereby said cutter plates are adjustable toward and away from the sides of the trench, substantially as shown and described. A

9. A structure as specified in claim 6, said device comprisin a groove cutter for making a groove in t e bottom of the trench in which to place tile.

A structure aspspecied in claim 6, groove cutter, and

down on the lower end of saidmechanism, for the purpose setforth.

Signed by me at Kenosha, Wis., this 25th day of Jan., 1917. i

J ULIUS L. STEEN ROD.

means to 

